Is CNN the worst news source on TV?

No, it’s Fox. But CNN is pretty horrible. In my media class we talk all the time about how the “game orientation” distorts and diminishes the quality of the information we receive. And, since CNN sees politics as all about the game, what we end up getting is a lot of crap. Nice piece from Carlos Maza in Vox:

In an interview with the New York Times Magazine, CNN president Jeff Zucker described the network’s approach to covering politics, saying, “The idea that politics is sport is undeniable, and we understood that and approached it that way.” That politics-as-sport approach has placed a heavy emphasis on drama, with much of CNN’s programming revolving around sensationalist arguments between hosts, guests, and paid pundits.

That fighting-based approach to covering politics has created a huge demand for Trump supporters willing to appear on the network, which is why CNN hired Trump supporters like Jeffrey Lord and Kayleigh McEnany to defend Trump full time.

But CNN’s fixation on drama and debate has turned the network’s coverage into a circus of misinformation. CNN’s Trump supporters derail segments critical of the president, misrepresent Trump’s positions to avoid tough questions, and peddle false and misleading information on national TV while being paid by the network. In many cases, CNN’s Trump supporters repeat the same lies and talking points that CNN’s serious journalists spend all day trying to debunk. [emphasis mine] That might explain why Trump has quietly pushed his surrogates to appear on CNN, even while publicly feuding with the network.

And, thanks to confirmation bias, it does not take a lot of misinformation at all for people to believe what they want to, no matter how hard Jake Tapper works to actually present facts. Let’s just sum it up this way– Jeff Zucker is very, very bad for America

2 Responses to Is CNN the worst news source on TV?

Have you noticed how many more Republicans appear on MSNBC since Greta Van Susteren was hired?
All to the good, IMO. It’s good to be reminded of how little the GOP cares about the general welfare of the citizens….even if it is in the Constitution.

VOX is probably the most anti-CNN site. Especially when Carlos Maza is there, he have a morbid fixation with CNN since he was at media matter, way before the actual situation. He only use the current situation to attack CNN even more, even when he don’t have credible argument. I mean, accusing CNN of portraying politic like sports, when that’s what MSNBC and FOX does!! Even VOX see politic as a fight, mostly a fight against Trump, but a fight anyway, a fight with all his drama, bias and everything, the complete opposite of journalism.